Alcohol and entertainment licences

Who To Contact

The Licensing Act regulates the sale and supply of alcohol, the provision of regulated entertainment and the provision of refreshment late at night. This regime is controlled by local authorities.

The Licensing Act

The Licensing Act regulates the sale and supply of alcohol, the provision of regulated entertainment and the provision of refreshment late at night. This regime is controlled by local authorities.

Licence fees for premise licences and club registration certificates are based on the rateable value of the premises, and you can check the rateable value on the Valuation Office Agency website.

Recent Changes in April 2017

The Policing and Crime Act 2016 and Immigration Act 2016 have resulted in a number of changes to the Licensing Act 2003. As of 6 April 2017, Individual applicants, including those in a partnership which is not a limited liability partnership, cannot be issued with a licence if they do not have the entitlement to live and work in the UK, or if they are subject to a condition preventing them from doing work relating to the carrying on of a licensable activity. Applicants will now be required to demonstrate they have entitlement to live and work in the UK as part of the application process (Acceptable proofs listed at the end of the relevant application form). Any licence granted will become invalid if the holder ceases to be entitled to live and work in the UK. There is a new duty for existing personal licence holders to inform the Licensing Authority if they are convicted of a relevant or foreign offence, or if they are required to pay an immigration penalty and the Licensing Authority can now suspend or revoke a personal licence under such circumstances. There are also some changes to the Summary Review procedures.

No requirement to renew personal licences

From 1 April 2015 it is no longer necessary to renew a personal licence. Section 115 of the Licensing Act 2003 has been amended by section 69 of the Deregulation Act 2015, removing the requirement to renew personal licences. Your existing licence is still valid, but if you have changed your details or require a replacement, please contact the Licensing Service on 0151 443 2300. There is a fee of £10.50 for the issue of replacement personal licences.

​Changes as a result of Immigration Act 2016

From 6 April 2017, Individual applicants, including those in a partnership which is not a limited liability partnership, cannot be issued with a licence if they do not have the entitlement to live and work in the UK, or if they are subject to a condition preventing them from doing work relating to the carrying on of a licensable activity. Applicants will now be required to demonstrate they have entitlement to live and work in the UK as part of the application process (Acceptable proofs listed at the end of the relevant application form). Any licence granted will become invalid if the holder ceases to be entitled to live and work in the UK.

How to apply for licences relating to this act

Please find in the 'downloads' section below the relevant application forms relating to the Licensing Act. Should you require any further assistance in completing the forms please contact the Huyton One Stop Shop on 0151 443 2300 (open 9am - 4pm on weekdays).

Children in entertainment

Statement of Licensing Policy

In accordance with the act we have published a Statement of Licensing Policy and all licensing decisions made by the council will have regard to this policy. You can download the policy below.

Tacit consent

Tacit consent applies to every type of application. Where tacit consent applies this means that you will be able to act as though your application is granted if you have not heard from us by the end of the target completion period.

Downloads

You will need Adobe Acrobat to view PDF documents. If you do not already have this, you can download it from the Adobe website. If you require documents in an accessible format, please contact us.